EMI Industries Blog

If you found two identical products priced the same, one made in China and the other made in the USA, which one would you purchase?  Now, if the one built in the United States was a dollar or two LESS expensive sitting on your dock, is there any question?

That's exactly what EMI Industries (with plants in Tampa Bay, FL; Alpharetta, GA; and Cranston, RI) is offering to our customers this summer.

You'll soon hear more about our newest line of top quality, stainless steel NSF tables - our "Sterling" collection.  When you compare price and quality to similar tables made overseas, you'll probably be shocked at what an incredible value these tables really are.  

Why are we offering such a great product at such an affordable price?  Well, partly because we want to prove that American manufacturers can compete with off shore sources.  Together, our customers can be more competitive while helping to bring back prosperity to the U.S.  Save money...Buy American!

NAFEM, the North American Association of Food Equipment Manufacturers, recently hosted a show in Orlando, Florida that our staff at EMI Industries was able to attend.  Over 500 companies throughout the US exhibited and this was their time to show their stuff. 

NAFEM caters to the foodservice & food equipment manufacturing industry with products ranging from fully decked out commercial kitchens, down to accessories such as wine glasses and cutlery. 

This year companies were especially displaying their colors - their GREEN colors that is.  New developments are in the forefront as companies compete to design, engineer, and deliver sustainable, energy-saving, eco-friendly products - jumping aboard the green wagon.   

A special exhibit, themed ‘What's Hot! What's Cool!', was reserved for the latest innovative products on the market, most of them incorporating their efforts in saving energy and minimizing carbon footprints. 

Remco Industries International, Inc. unveiled the industry's first countertop carousel brick oven, the Remco Millenium 2000 CT2. This compact pizza, cooking machine offers high productivity, cooking in just 60 seconds, and a low carbon foot print.  Plus it's fun to look at - it resembles something out of the Jetsons! This was one of many sustainable products on the market. 

 The Remco Millenium 2000 CT2

Aside from the product displays, the show contributed educational seminars on topics pertaining to safety in the food and beverage industry, innovative thinking, and future trends. 

This was definitely a show worth attending and our staff thoroughly enjoyed it! 

EMI's design and manufacturing team was cited by MoFA as being an important contributor to the development of the gift shop in the Hazel Hough Wing project. Customized display cases with shelving and a customer service counter are both functional and aesthetically pleasing for their employees an guests. We are proud to be acknowledged as a team player in this effort.   

Written by Kevin Stubbs, Director of Metal Manufacturing, EMI Industries 

It was a blustery day along the Gasparilla Parade route. The air was fresh, the sun was hot, and the men on the truck were thirsty. They started drinking like fish in water. The parade started and the men on the fire truck were having a jolly old time tossing the beads to the crowd along Bayshore Blvd. Then all of a sudden the mood on the truck changed, the men became very quiet and the need for more beverages came to a complete halt. "What should we do?" asked one to another. 

No one wanted to talk - they had to pee! They could not wait for the parade to end. Upon approaching the end of the parade route they asked themselves, "What can we do to make the next parade a more enjoyable experience?" One man exclaimed, "We have to put an out house on this truck or were all going to die!" So, as they pondered, one of them said, "Hey, there is a custom S/S manu­facturer in the area that just might be able to help us out with this problem."

The fire truck was delivered to the EMI Clearwater location and the troubled men from the fire truck explained the situation, and with the experience in the shop, all was resolved.  They got their outhouse! 

The next parade was a much more enjoyable experience and everyone  was very happy with the outcome. 

NEW MACHINERY FOR EMI's WOODSHOP WILL INCREASE EFFICIENCY

To boost production and meet the increased demand from our customers, EMI Industries took advantage of the Atlanta IWF show pricing and purchased new machines to replace the existing Holzma panel saw and Weeke machining center.  Installation of these new machines has begun.

Both machines employ Beckhoff computer technology to drastically reduce the cycle times and make them far more productive than their predecessors.  Using fiber optic technology, information travels from the operations computer to the moving parts of the machines at a much faster pace than ever before.

The Holzma Hpp-380 front load panel saw has several other features that were not available on the former HPP-81 saw. The most revolutionary and beneficial is Holzma's patented "shark fin" side pressure device.  The "shark fin" is a simple design with far fewer working parts, is much faster, much more durable and versatile than the old roller style side pressure device.  The "SPD" will square any size board and any thickness of material without issue.

The new Holzma also features a rugged "rack and pinion" saw carriage drive that allows this speedy machine's saw carriage to start and stop on a dime.  This feature not only helps with faster cycle times, it is also a great safety benefit.

As a complement to the new saw, EMI also purchased a "Holzma Optilift" that will replace the existing scissors lift that feeds the panel saw. Labor costs are reduced as it allows multi-stack cutting without a lot of physical effort to load the saw.

The new Weeke Venture 3 CNC machining center is packed full of features that increase operation speeds, improve quality and help "dummy proof" machine operation. Three main features are key to its efficiency.

First, a patented "LED" pod placement system, which lights along the consoles and the front of the machine to help the operator quickly align the suction pods into proper position, prevents damage. 

The second key feature is an integrated C-axis that allows the use of adapter aggregates to drill or rout horizontally at any angle.  A special "floating head" aggregate has been purchased to allow "constant depth processing" in materials that vary in thickness.

The final key feature of the new Weeke is the utilization of dual Z-axis technology. Essentially Weeke took the routing and drilling units and put them on separate guide-ways to allow them to go up and down separately.  This allows for faster changeover times from drilling to routing.  It also allows the processing head to be smaller, weigh less and thus put less strain on the guide-ways and create less long term maintenance.

These new machines purchased from Stiles Machinery are the two single fastest machines of their kind on the market today. They also have the same rugged durability as their predecessors and should serve to keep EMI Industries in its technologic leadership position for years to come for many years to come.

Thanks to attending an informative Webinar hosted by A.R.E. (Association for Retail Environments), of which EMI Industries is a current member, EMI management staff acquired additional information on the hottest topic for wood product manufacturers.  C.A.R.B. (California Air Resources Board) will begin regulating the quantity of formaldehyde, a toxic air contaminant, emitted from composite wood sold, or used to make finished products in the state of California.  The new regulation will be phased in starting January 1, 2009.  As this only stands for wood shipping into California, not all manufacturers are required to adhere to these new regulations just yet.   

Continually at the forefront of the industry, EMI Industries is taking the initiative to comply with C.A.R.B.'s regulations, for all of the wood products it manufactures not just those shipping into California. The materials used by EMI Industries used to make finished products which will be compliant by January 1, 2009 include melamine, particle board and laminate.  Additionally, C.A.R.B. compliant products will be tagged accordingly prior to leaving EMI facilities.  This ensures that manufactured wood products emit no additional formaldehyde into the air. 

The primary benefits of the new regulations are the reduction in formaldehyde emissions, total public exposure, and excess cancer risk in California.  EMI Industries is pleased to contribute to the overall well being of workers and the environment. 

A cool thing happened last week.  A representative from the Rachael Ray television show - Yes! Rachael Ray, the daytime cooking show with spunk - contacted EMI Industries to inquire about our checkstand products. 

The show is planning on airing an episode featuring the National Grocery Bagging contest. Recognizing EMI Industries and a leading checkstand manufacturer, they looked to us for the 6 identical grocery collection and bagging end units required for the competition. Of course you can imagine we were excited and open to this unique opportunity.   Unfortunately, the timing of the call, coupled with the fact we are having our best two months (back-to-back) ever in sales and revenues had all of our plants filled to capacity. The Rachael Ray show needed the baggers in 3 days. That just wasn't feasible as customers were counting on us. We had to decline.  Nevertheless, Rachael Ray will keep us in mind for upcoming opportunities.  So, thanks for thinking of us Rachael Ray!